Railway cars are useful for transporting large amounts of cargo. One example of a railway car for transporting large amounts of bulk material is an open top rotary dump-type gondola car. This type of gondola car has an open top for receiving large amounts of bulk material for transporting the bulk material from one location to another. Upon reaching a designated destination, the gondola car may be inverted, thereby dumping the bulk material from the gondola car.
Since most bulk material carried by railway gondola cars are of a granular or lump-form type, such as coal, sand, or gravel, some railway gondola cars of the rotary dump-type are constructed to include a depressed bottom assembly for increased capacity of the gondola railway car. Additionally, the depressed bottom assembly lowers the center of gravity of the railway gondola car and provides reduced wind resistance from the railway gondola car due to its lower profile.
Railway gondola cars having a depressed bottom assembly, however, suffer several disadvantages. For example, the load experienced by the bottom assembly of the railway gondola car must be supported by or transferred to a main load bearing structure of the railway gondola car. However, placing a load bearing structure within a portion of the bottom assembly of the railway gondola car decreases cargo capacity of the railway gondola car. Additionally, reducing the size of the bottom assembly of the railway gondola car, or utilizing a bottom assembly having a number of longitudinal or lateral compartments to redistribute the load from the bottom assembly or provide room for load bearing structures reduces the overall capacity of the railway gondola car and prevents effective unloading and clean-out of the railway gondola car.